John Douglas is in his second season as an assistant coach at Miles. He is the brother of head coach Leon Douglas but has certainly carved his own path to success in basketball.
John began his coaching career as an assistant at Calhoun Community College. Before long, he moved into the lead role as head coach. He is only the second coach in the history of Alabama Junior Colleges to have coached in a National Championship game (in 2000). In a basketball publication the following year, the Warhawks were picked as the preseason No. 2 team in the nation; a team that had only been in Division 1 the first year they made their appearance in Hutchinson. A three-time Coach of the Year winner, Coach Douglas was selected to be a court coach with the USA Olympic Team in 2000 after his Calhoun Community College team finished 32-4 and runner’s-up in the NJCAA National Tournament.
John has turned around two programs in a short period of time. When he took the job at Lawson State Community College in 2003, he coached the team to a 46-16 record his first two years, finishing second, then first, in conference play. The Lawson State men's basketball program had a record of 8-20 the year prior to his arrival. In 2009, John took over as head men's basketball coach at Fort Valley State University, going 17-40 in two seasons. He later became an assistant coach at Tuskegee.
Prior to his coaching career, John enjoyed a successful collegiate and professional career. He started at Calhoun Community College, where his freshman season saw the Warhawks go 27-3 and earn a No. 3 national ranking. After two excellent seasons at Calhoun, where he still holds numerous scoring records, John transferred to the Kansas, where in 1978 broke the legendary Wilt Chamberlain's record for most points scored by a visiting player in the Big Eight Conference when he dropped 46 on Iowa State. John went on to earn All-Big Eight Honors, Honorable Mention All-American, Newcomer of the Year and MVP for the Jayhawks.
John was selected in the sixth round of the 1978 NBA Draft by the New Orleans Jazz. After playing a couple of years in the Continental Basketball Association, he played two seasons with the San Diego Clippers before continuing his career overseas.
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